Anthony (Tony) Patrick Stempeck

Reno - March 2, 1957-October 19, 2020

"He was the guy walking into your life when everyone else was walking out." Tony died suddenly on October 19, 2020 of COVID-19. We are forever grateful that the love of his life, Lynne Brooke Clark was with him at the time of his passing and he was not alone.

Tony was born on March 2, 1957 at Saint Mary's hospital, one of Casimir "Steamboat" Stempeck and Inez Casale Stempeck's seven children. He attended Kate Smith elementary school, Sparks Junior High and graduated from Sparks High in 1975. He grew up in the family home behind Casale's Halfway Club on East 4 th Street and grew up working in the family business for his mom and dad as well as his uncle Jerry Casale (Inez's brother) and his wife, our Aunt Beverly. Tony's role within the business grew as Inez gradually passed the reins of day-to-day operations over to him.

Tony was abundantly and immeasurably wealthy in friendship. He was a friend's friend who seemed to never meet a stranger. Blessed to be part of a large group of life-long friends, Tony was loyal, loving, generous, kind and sincere, it was said that "he was the guy walking into your life when everyone else was walking out". Since his passing, many have shared their stories about how Tony being in their lives changed them for the better and indeed several have shared that his presence, word of advice or counsel at a critical point saved their lives. Although he would never have taken credit, he was indeed that kind of guy and he had an incredible compassion for others.

Tony was well-read and could discuss nearly any topic at length. A friend of ours from Great Britain told us "He knows more about England than I do and I was BORN there"! Also known for his lightning fast wit and most irreverent sense of humor where very little-if anything- was out of bounds, he loved you deeply and teased you mercilessly. His humor is one of the many things that will sustain us through this incredible loss.

Tony was a single parent who raised his daughters to be the incredible women they are today—he was so very, very proud of them, as are we all. Tony was an "all-in" kind of dad, honored as "Parent of the Year" at Greenbrae elementary two years in a row! He was well known at the school for both spaghetti feeds and Thanksgiving dinners for the girls' classrooms as well as putting together a team to assemble new playground equipment.

He lived his best, most happy and content life during the past several years. He saw those beautiful girls of his grow into successful, thriving adults- we all recognize that Haley and Cierra raised him to be the man we always KNEW he could be and we often asked "who raised whom?"! Among the greatest joys in his life was walking them down the aisle into happy marriages. Tony also shared many years with our "Charm" and "Bonus Mom" Lynne Brooke Clark. Lynne and Tony had known each other since junior high and share an incredible, decades -long, bond of love and friendship.

Preceded in death by his father Casimir ("Steamboat") in 1969 and his mom Inez on September 26, 2020- just 3 weeks prior to his own death-as well as brother Bill O'Coyne in 1974, Tony is survived by his amazing daughters Haley Kramer (Paul) and Cierra Marin (Daniel) as well as brothers Charles and John Stempeck, sisters Madaline Zanoni, Helen Jayme and Maria Rogers. He will also be missed by our Uncle Jerry Casale, our Aunt Beverly and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews as well as the cherished circle of friends who consider him a brother.

Inez and Tony positioned the family legacy, The Halfway Club, to be continued by the next generation and we will do so in honor of the loving work of those who came before us.

In memory of these two very proud Sparks High graduates (Inez class of'46 and Tony class of '75), a memorial scholarship has been established to benefit SHS students interested in pursuing further education in the Culinary/Hospitality industries. Donations to this 501 (c) (3) can be made to Sparks High School, attn: Our Legacy Scholarship, 820 15th Street, Sparks, Nevada 89431. Please accept our humble thanks for the generosity of family and friends, the beautiful flowers and heartfelt condolences. These kindnesses have made a huge difference to us all.

Arrangements through Truckee Meadows Cremation and Burial in conjunction with Mountain View Cemetery. Our sincerest thanks to Heather, Alex and Harrison at Truckee Meadows for their kindness and courtesy throughout.